Riddle Me That?
by horsewhisper3
Summary: Sequel to Riddle Me This?


**Thank you so much for ****all the reviews! Sorry it took me so long to write this but I had to make sure I knew where and what I wanted to do with this story. I'm going to stop talking now and let you enjoy this sequel to Riddle Me This and Dominic Gite belongs to Ginnyisdacoolest. We thought we could write about each others' characters or mention them for fun! If you want to read about her story go to comics, batman, and look for a story called "Letters and Numbers". :) I also want to thank Esperata for her help again, love ya Kris:D And I want to thank my Beta reader Ginnyisdacoolest! I really appreciate your help!**

**Riddle Me That?**

Shyera looked at the clock waiting patiently for her class to end. She guessed that she still had at least twenty minutes left of class. She softly touched her side where she knew a bruise was forming. She sighed almost wishing she could have controlled her temper during that morning. She supposed now the saying was true about red heads having bad tempers. She winced a bit when she accidently touched the foreseen bruise too hard but didn't show any other signs of pain, thanks to her extremely high tolerance for pain. She once got her kneecap dislocated in P.E. It had been on the other side of her leg and she dumbfounded everyone who saw she wasn't crying. But as soon as it healed, her fifteen minutes of fame were over. She didn't mind too much when the spotlight was taken off her, but the attention was nice. She was in Algebra and was having trouble understanding it. Her memory was always foggy about this stuff and the teacher wasn't going over everything because he assumed that they all knew this. There was no way Shyera was going to look like an idiot in front of everyone by asking for help, so she was waiting for class to just end and try to solve the math problems later.

Recently that morning her and a popular girl that she did her best to ignore got into an argument about how 'she' ruined the science project they were forced to work on together. Her name was Maria Smith; Shyera had actually done very little, since Maria seemed to think she would just ruin it. She felt annoyed with the high school preps attitude but was doing her best to remain patient. She tried calmly explaining to her the things she did was just decorating but Maria insisted she ruined the whole project because there paper air balloon didn't fly. Eventually Shyera started losing her tolerance for Maria when she began questioning her intelligence and came to her face trying to intimidate her. Their argument now became greatly heated especially when the word 'dumb bitch' left her with gritted teeth. That had been the last straw! Her father would call her things like that but now this high school prep who thought she was flawless thought _she_ had the right to tell her how stupid she was. Maria Smith was a far cry from perfect and she was in no mood to put up with this attitude! She felt more stressed and agitated, especially since the Riddler had her cell phone still and she was grounded for a month from her room for 'losing' it, where she could escape the reality that was her life! She broke her promise to use Tae Kwon Do for self defence and punched her in the face, giving her a black eye. Outraged, Maria gave a pretty good punch on the side of her ribs. Shyera gasped as Maria's fist collided with her ribs. Shyera quickly thinking faked another punch in her face and did a quick round kick to her ribs but with a lot more force. Still angry she grabbed Maria's arm and twisted it before flipping her over her shoulder and knocking the breath out of her. The anger left her blind while she did this and when it left she saw Maria panting heavily on the floor. Her teachers always said she had an animal in her when she chose to be aggressive. If it wasn't for the fear of getting into trouble she actually would have enjoyed that. She found that thought very strange; she wasn't usually a violent person, but lately it just seemed like people were pushing her and pushing her towards an edge of a cliff and she didn't know how much more she could take. She tried being the good girl and meet up to everyone expectations, but if they weren't going to appreciate anything she does then what's the point? Shyera had gotten off easy since she was normally a well behaved student and was allowed to attend her next class; however her parents were going to get a phone call. _'Will I ever win in the game of life?' _she thought bitterly.

She had recently been studying about the Riddler and other puzzles so she would feel prepared if the Riddler decided to show up in her life again and was shocked to find out that they were kindred spirits. She heard about his terrible tantrums he would have when being taken back to Arkham and knew she could feel similar tantrums inside her but never let them out. Just knowing they had this much in common scared her and yet her ever conflicting self also felt intrigued at the idea that her and a genius had so many things in common and that they could relate to each other. She had to admit that since her secret encounter with the Riddler she had been feeling paranoid; there were just moments where she felt like she was being watched or followed and the fact that Riddler had her cell phone with information about her on it didn't help. She knew that they both knew how valuable information could be. She brushed these thoughts aside as she looked at her math paper, trying to figure out the math problem.

She stared at an equation until a note was dropped in her eye sight by a man who looked like a math teacher she might have someday and looked like he was in his forties. He must have been a substitute teacher helping out around the school since she didn't recognize him. He looked slightly nervous as he walked away and went out the door. She didn't think much of it at first, merely thinking the principal would want to hear her side of the story...until she read it. The world froze around her as her eyes read the note and a chill ran down her spine. It seemed an old 'friend" wanted to see her. She instantly regretted reading it, especially when the note didn't use her birth given name!

_"Why hello Shyera! I was hoping we could finish our little discussion, it was rather sad really that we were rudely interrupted. It was also a pity you had to leave on such short notice especially since you 'forgot' something and not even a chance to say good bye. I will gladly return it to you and perhaps we could finish our little conversation? Oh and as to where you can meet me, here's a riddle: Some try to avoid me, others have to come to me. Some are afraid to come to me even though I'm not alive...What am I?"_

Shyera shook her head no. Not again, even for the sake of her cell phone and its information was she going to wind up in the Riddler's grasp again! He didn't seem too dangerous or even violent when she met him but she barely knew him and that made him unpredictable. He was a criminal! An insane criminal! If anything she was going to act like she was going to go to the principal's office like the note said and bolt home and call the police! She would tell them everything if it meant she could have a normal life again... or as normal as it can get for her with the bullies in her life.

She arose from her seat and told her teacher where she was going and grabbed her backpack and left the class, trying to appear as calm as she could. She had to leave and get home. As she power walked down the hallway she couldn't help but explore the what-ifs about what could happen if she left. What if The Riddler held the school for ransom? What if he told the police when they took him into custody that she never tried to turn him in until now? What if she ended up going to jail? Would she have to move somewhere safe? Or what if Riddler became upset that she didn't come to the office or that she turned him in and decided to come after her or her family and friends? Well her dad she wouldn't mind – she froze when she reached an exit door with a tubby old man blocking her exit. He reminded her of the Riddler's henchmen. The man looked up and started slowly walking towards her as though he didn't want to spook her. She quickly turned around and power walked down the hall to the next exit while clutching her bag tighter and fighting the urge to just run. She needed to stay calm and think. She heard the man's footsteps behind her keeping up with her a little distance away. She was about to turn toward the next exit when she saw another man was at the exit. He slowly walked towards her, just as the other one did.

"Easy there girl we don't want ta hurt ya. We just want ta take ya ta the boss, so just be a good girl and come with us quietly okay?" the recent man blocking the exit said to her with a New York accent. What if Riddler wanted to kill her just because she knew where he was staying? The very thought caused her to throw her bag as hard as she could at his face and take off running full speed to the last exit. As expected she saw another guy blocking her exit. This was too real; it just had to be a nightmare! Things like this just didn't happen to her! She ran as hard she could, then jumped and kicked the guy in the face with everything she had, knocking him to the ground. She reached the door but suddenly had her arm seized and was pulled away from the exit.

"No way! You can grab her legs and get your face kicked in!" Shyera knew that was the man that she had kicked as she struggled against the men trying to carry her to the principal's office. The men had to really endure her punches and kicks, especially since she knew the pressure points and just how hard to hit. She said good bye to her life as someone opened the door to the end of her life. Just because she would possibly die didn't mean she had to go down without a fight. She continued struggling and managed to kick a few of them hard and away from her but they came back and restrained her just as tight. She was tired, they were too strong! When they were inside, a voice surprisingly familiar froze them all by yelling.

"What do you think you're doing? Release her immediately! If she doesn't wish to speak to me, then you have no right to force her!" Shyera turned her head to the one she knew yelled the outburst. He was standing behind the principles desk glaring angrily at the men who immediately released her and muttered a "sorry boss" as they walked into the secretary's room. Shyera noticed a skinny man with black hair and glasses and looked like he was on his way to going bald. She recognized him as the man that had come in to deliver the note.

Riddler walked over to her and offered his hand to help her up. She nervously accepted it and debated whether or not she should make a run for it. "I am terribly sorry for their behaviour Shyera. I really hope they didn't harm you. They didn't, did they my dear?" he asked softly. Shyera studied him and was surprised to see great concern in his eyes and shook her head slowly. She suddenly felt safe and curious and decided against running away. She could at least figure out what it was he wanted. "Would you like to have a seat?" he offered as he returned to his seat behind the desk. Shyera was surprised that he wasn't angry with her for leaving him when he went to go fix something. She had expected that he would either kill her or have that same tone of voice he gave to his men; nevertheless she walked over to the seat and sat across the desk from him. She had to admit he lived up to his name E. Nigma because he truly was an enigma. She wasn't sure what to expect from him but that only made him even more dangers.

"Are you certain they didn't hurt you Shyera? I can get you some medicine or a pack of ice." he said as he continued to stare at her with a deep overwhelming concern in his eyes and voice.

"I...I'm fine. But thank you for your concern." she replied politely. She had never seen someone so concerned or worried for her. It nearly made her speechless! The way he was acting wasn't what she was expecting. She couldn't help second guessing herself if she was maybe wrong about how she judged him.

"Oh, you're quite welcome... so I heard about your encounter with that girl, Maria wasn't it?" he asked; she could still hear some concern in his voice, though this time it seemed he was trying to hide it subtly. Shyera couldn't help but raise a sceptical eyebrow.

"How did you know about that so fast?" she replied innocently, though she couldn't help the slight suspicion in her eyes. To her surprise he looked away with an embarrassed look on his face and chuckled a bit nervously.

"Well in all honesty I was quite worried about you. So I just decided to keep an eye on you, and help you if I could. Oh and by the way you needn't worry about your parents receiving that little phone call from the school, especially since I hacked the computer and made sure your school system knows that your phone number was changed." he replied with his trade mark smirk as he crossed his leg over the other with his ankle resting on his knee.

"But who-"

"Oh your father and them had a lovely conversation about how they shouldn't force children that don't get along, to work with each other. Your father also, I believe, mentioned that if they didn't do something about Maria then they would be sued for every penny they make and since they are having budget problems I think they will listen to his demands." He put a hand to his chin in thought never losing his wry smile. "Ah yes I also believe Maria's grade has now gone from a D to an F-. I suppose she should have studied harder. Oh well not everyone can graduate high school, I suppose." He finished smiled smugly.

"You say you're trying to help me, then why did you have your henchmen blocking the exits?" She asked with still a bit of suspension in her voice though her eyes still had confusion in them. His smirk was wiped off clean by her question and the embarrassed look returned on his face.

"Well I was worried that you wouldn't accept my help. I have heard about how you don't like to ask for help while you're in school. So I thought the least I could do was offer what help I could, regardless of whether you reject it or not." he finished, resting his head on his hand that rested on the arm rest.

"Oh... well thank you." She slowly flashed her most grateful smile at him. Maybe she was wrong about him, but what about the fact that he was still a criminal? Is it even possible for a criminal to be a good man?

"So have you thought about my offer?" he asked leaning forward in his seat slightly. Despite her recent thoughts of him he reminded her of a lion that was about to pounce on its prey. She decided to be brave and tell him the truth.

"Um... thank you for the offer but I really would rather not be a criminal." If he was a 'friend' then he just had to understand, right? To her surprise he just chuckled.

"Shyera I can assure you I am not breaking the law at all. I am merely playing a highly complex game with the Batman, kind of like chess. Have you ever played chess Shyera?" He asked curiously with a risen eyebrow.

"No, eventually I want to learn to play, but I just don't have the patience for it right now."

"Pity, I bet you would be really good at it I could teach sometime if you would like." She smiled and nodded her head. "But as I was saying I am actually just showing everyone that even Batman has his flaws. I just want show everyone that even the _great_ Batman has his weaknesses and so in a way I'm actually aiding him. After all how can you become stronger if you don't acknowledge your weaknesses?" Shyera thought about that for a moment, she had to admit he was right. If you don't look at what makes you weak, how can you possibly work past those weaknesses and become stronger? "And personally I can't help but see him as a bully; of course you know what that's like, don't you? There is always someone that just has to be better than you, _they_ always have to be the best and come out on top!" She thought about that for a moment, so he is just challenging him but at the same time the Riddler's helping his opponent! She opened her mouth as another thought came to mind.

"But what about the robberies?" Riddler smiled as he twirled a pen between his fingers.

"I simply 'steal' money so I can give certain people money to get more money back: it's just another little game I play. What I do with the money in business transactions is a process which all the rich knuckleheads can never figure out how to do. You have to know who to pay or who to hire, why if those people knew the things I know about spending money and getting even more back then there would be a lot of people in Gotham that were bankrupt. Besides the least the rich snobs of society could do is offer some money to the poor, personally I think it would be for them. I suppose like all great thinkers I'm just not appreciated in my time and another challenge for the game in not killing people. Unfortunately some of my business partners just take the easy way and kill people." he replied with a look of sufficient dislike on his face.

Shyera rose slowly from her seat. "I think I would like to think about this before I make a decision, if you don't mind." Riddler rose from his seat as well.

"Of course I don't mind; you're a smart girl for trying to think about such a big decision." He smirked at her as he took something out of his pocket and handed it to her. She smiled and held her hand out for her cell phone.

"Thank you Riddler." He tipped his hat to her and picked up his cane that had been lying next to the desk.

"Please, call me Edward, and I put my number in your cell phone for you if you need my help and please: if you need my help Shyera, don't hesitate to call me." he said with a smile. She could still see a subtle concern in his eyes and felt deeply touched that he would be concerned for her wellbeing after what happened. Nobody else seemed to care, he was the only one and helped her get out of trouble and told her that he was going to look out for her. She had to admit she really loved that idea, she finally felt safe and protected. The very thought caused her to smile brightly. "Oh and one more thing, and I hope you don't mind this, but I have arranged for my friend Dominic Gite here to help keep an eye on you for me so if you're ever in trouble, contact me or just keep an eye out for him." Shyera smiled at the man with glasses who smiled back and handed her her bag.

"Okay, thank you. Bye Edward." She said softly as she left.

"Good bye my dear, oh and Shyera I still would like to know the answer to that riddle." He stared at her knowingly and she stared back with a look that said she was still unsure she wanted to know the answer to that riddle, but she nodded in understanding and left. As soon as she left the most predatory look came across Riddler's face as he rested both hands on his cane. He knew he planted quite a few seeds in her mind now; all he had to do was wait for them to grow. "Keep a sharp eye on her Dominic." he said as he watched her walk down the hall from the small window in the door. "She could make quite an asset to a lot of our plans if we can get her to join us and we wouldn't want anything mundane to interfere with that now would we?"

"Yes Nigma." he said as he walked out of the office. The Riddler sat down again behind the desk and began plotting for Shyera's future.


End file.
